People can take the Taipei MRT free of charge if they access it at Nanjing Sanmin Station or Taipei Arena Station on the Green Line between 12am and 6am on Jan. 1, the Taipei Department of Transportation said on Friday, outlining its plans to ease crowding during New Year’s events in the capital.
More than 200,000 people are expected to attend New Year’s Eve events in Taipei, with singer A-mei (張惠妹) performing at the Taipei Dome and the city government’s New Year’s Eve party at Taipei City Hall Plaza, the department said.
As people have tended to use the MRT’s Blue or Red lines to exit the area after events in previous years given their proximity, long lines have formed at stations on the two routes, it said.
Photo: CNA
To encourage people to disperse by using the Green Line, free shuttles to Nanjing Sanmin Station would run on the east side of Guangfu S Road between Zhongxiao E Road and Civic Boulevard, it said.
Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said that people who access the Green Line at Nanjing Sanmin or Taipei Arena from 12am to 6am on Jan. 1 could travel for free, regardless of which station they exited at.
People who use an electronic stored-value card would be able to swipe the card to enter the station without charge, while tokens would be available without charge from the service desk by the ticket machines at the two stations, TRTC said.
Although trips from the two stations would be free within the specified times, a charge would apply for people who exit at the same station more than 15 minutes after entering, it said, adding that a charge would also apply for passengers who remain within the MRT system for more than two hours.
Excluding the Xiaobitan (Light Green) and Xinbeitou (Light Red) branch lines, the MRT would run for 42 hours from 6pm on Dec. 31 to 11:59pm on Jan. 1, it said.
Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) called on people planning to attend the events to use the Green Line afterward, as it would save time and money.
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